Greenwich Academy's Emilia Tapsall poses with parents and coach Angela Tammaro at Greenwich Academy for signing day. She will play field hockey at the University of Virginia.
Photo: David Fierro/Staff Photographer

Greenwich Academy's Emilia Tapsall poses with parents and coach...

Greenwich Academy's Emilia Tapsall poses with coach Angela Tammaro at Greenwich Academy for signing day. She will play field hockey at the University of Virginia.
Photo: Bob Luckey

"It feels awesome to complete it because it was such a long process," said Tapsall, who was joined Wednesday by her parents, grandmother and GA field hockey coach Angela Tammaro. "I went to camps starting my freshman year and by the middle of my junior year I slimmed my options down to four schools. When I visited UVA, I knew it was the school for me."

After visiting Virginia, Tapsall saw her future.

"It was the most beautiful campus I have ever seen, the players were so inviting and the coaches were very nice," Tapsall said. "It looked liked I could fit in with the team and the school."

Coached by Michele Madison, Virginia finished 16-2 in 2012, advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Cavaliers were sparked by 2012 Field Hockey Player of the Year Michelle Vitesse and Paige Selenski, both of whom were members of the U.S. Olympic team.

"They were among the top eight teams last year and they have eight other recruits coming in with me, so I'm really excited," said Tapsall, who also plays lacrosse at GA. "It's going to be an awesome experience."

While playing club soccer with Everton America, Tapsall attended Tammaro's field hockey camp prior to entering her freshman year at GA. She soon opted to make field hockey her sport of choice.

"I decided to switch for some reason and thank God I did," Tapsall said. "It was a spur of the moment situation."

Tammaro recalled seeing Tapsall in action for the first time.

"She was a big soccer player and she came to the field hockey camp we run in June and we were all impressed," Tammaro said. "I asked her if she was considering GA and she said she was coming, so I was really excited to hear that."

Though she began playing the sport competitively as a ninth grader, field hockey certainly wasn't a foreign sport to Tapsall. Her uncle Manzar Iqbal played for the 1984 U.S. Olympic field hockey team and her father Ian competed in the sport growing up in Great Britain. Tapsall's older sister Liv, a GA graduate also starred on the school's field hockey squad and is currently playing for Trinity College.

"Field hockey has always been in our family," said Tapsall, who scored more than 30 goals her senior season. "It didn't take long for me to adjust to playing it because I saw my dad and uncle play a lot. You always need to learn so many more things with field hockey, which makes it so much fun."

After watching Tapsall flourish, Tammaro knows she has the skills to succeed at the next level.

"She has excellent speed, she can move the ball well, plus she sees the field well and makes excellent passes," Tammaro said. "Emilia spent a lot of time working on her hockey, so it's nice to see her settle on a school that will be great for her."

Tapsall's final field hockey season for the Gators ended in style, as GA captured the NEPSAC title with a 2-1 win over rival Hotchkiss School. With GA trailing 1-0, Tapsall's pass set Eva Rosencrans up for the tying goal in the second half. Pam Schulman's goal in sudden death overtime gave the Gators the win, capping Tapsall's most enjoyable season.

"This senior season was unique because we were such a close knit group of people," she said. "Our goal from the beginning of the season was to win that championship and we made sure we completed every step."